Health Research Authority (Amendment) Regulations 2012

Baroness Emerton Excerpts

Wednesday 13th June 2012 Grand Committee

I hope that those remarks are helpful and serve to put these statutory instruments into their proper context. The purpose of the HRA is to protect and to promote the interests of patients and the public in health research. It protects patients from unethical research while enabling them to benefit from participating in research by simplifying the processes around it. I hope I have reassured noble Lords that the amendment order and regulations that we have debated make a significant contribution to the fulfilment of this purpose. They provide for the HRA to have a non-executive majority board that can credibly balance the protection of patient and public interests with their promotion. I commend these instruments to the Committee.

[Baroness Emerton]

My Lords, the conversation today has been limited to medical and health research. During the passage of the Bill, we had long debates about multiprofessional involvement being included in the research. I am very concerned that the conversation has been very much geared towards medical and health research and has not mentioned the fact that there are healthcare professionals other than those involved with medicine.

[Earl Howe]

The noble Baroness is right to draw attention to that omission in my coverage of these instruments. Of course, she is right that there are many different kinds of research that will involve the HRA in one form or another. I have emphasised only the medical and pharmaceutical elements of the HRA’s remit, because these matters were high up on the agenda of the Academy of Medical Sciences when it produced its report in the context of UK plc.

However, the noble Baroness should bear in mind my remarks about joining up health research and social care research. The HRA will co-operate with various bodies for the purposes of creating a unified approval process, not just for health research but to promote a consistent national system for research governance generally. Where this includes a social care or nursing element, the HRA will work closely with the relevant bodies to promote processes and standards that are consistent with the NHS and social care elements.